Prime Minister Narendra Modi is presently on a two-day visit to Bangladesh, his first international trip since the COVID-19 pandemic began last year. His visit coincides with the neighbouring country's 50th Independence Day celebrations, and will see him holding talks with his counterpart, Sheikh Hasina.
PM addressed the Matua community in Orakandi after offering prayers at Orakandi Temple. "I was waiting for this opportunity for many years. During my 2015 visit to Bangladesh, I expressed my wish to visit Orakandi, and today that wish has come true," the PM said during the address.
He went on to claim that "during Corona pandemic, India & Bangladesh have proven their capabilities. Today both nations are facing this pandemic strongly and fighting it together. India is working by considering it its duty that Made in India vaccine reaches the citizens of Bangladesh."
Earlier in the day, PM Modi had paid tribute to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Bangabandhu Mausoleum Complex in Tungipara where Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina was also present.
Modi reached the mausoleum complex at around 11.30 a.m. where he was greeted with flowers by his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina, accompanied by her younger sister Sheikh Rehana, the two daughters of the Bangabandhu. Later, Modi laid wreaths at Bangabandhu's tomb.
Modi is the first Indian head of state to visit Tungipara.
The Orakandi Temple however is not the only religious site that the Prime Minister visited on Saturday. Prior to his arrival in Tungipara, he had offered morning prayers at the Jeshoreshwari Kali temple in Satkhira district.
